Training: Dance Around the World dance workshops

Choreographer instructions

A series of dances from around the world ending with freestyle. A busy, energetic workshop - prepare to sweat!

Please see the written information below.

We do not currently have voiceover notes for this workshop.

Dance Around the World

Music & Dance Around the World

Description

1) Warm Up

2) Start with creating a circle quickly. Tell them they need to make a circle for the second dance and they only have a few seconds to make a big circle. Say you are going to call “Africa” and they need to make a circle in 10 seconds. Practice this a couple of times then get on with teaching the steps from the top.

Steps

1)Haka – New Zealand

The Haka is performed by the New Zealand Rugby team, the All Blacks, before each match. It is an ancient tribal dance that shows strength.

2)African Jumping Dance – African

Performed by the Maasai tribe of Kenya and Tanzania. It is a tribal dance again showing strength. The arms must be kept down by their sides and they must aim to jump as high as they can, also keeping their feet together. Get the children to form a circle and give them a number between 1 and 4. Call out 1’s and all the 1’s run into the middle of the circle to jump, they must run back when you call the next number. Repeat with all the numbers.

3)Jay Ho – Indian

This dance is from Slumdog Millianare and shows the Bollywood style, with is an modern Indian dance combining traditional Indian dance steps and American street dance/pop.

4)Kalinka - Russian Folk Dance

It starts slowly and speeds up.

5)Salsa – Latin American/ Cuba

Slightly different from the Samba which is from Brazil, music is similar to Spanish where they dance Flamenco

6)Can Can – France – Paris

If you have time and the children are older you can get them to form a line or 2 lines. Don’t get them to put their arms around each other though as they will just pull one another. If no time just do it in the spaces they are already in.

7)Highland Fling – Scotland

The hands in the highland dance are very important as they show two stags (male deer) the middle finger joins the thumb and the other fingers sick up as the antlers. This is a dance performed by different clans men to show strength in their clan. A clan is a group that they belong to, usually family, but also area.

8)Freestyle – American

Get the children to freestyle however they like for 4 counts of 8, then make a finishing pose.

Additional Info

The Kalinka always builds, starting slow and getting quicker. The Haka is an ancient tribal dance and now is used by the rugby team to show strength, the Scottish highland dancing the hands are two stags (middle finger joins thumb and the other fingers stick up as the antlers) the Scottish male deer, and again this signifies strength. The Salsa speaks for itself. Bollywood is a modern day mix of traditional Indian steps and modern American pop style and is used in Indian films.

I usually give the facts before teaching each section. It's a lot to fit in (as usual) but the kids love it. Especially making the noises in the Haka and the Kalinka getting faster.